Ayaka Kobayashi
by Monochrome666
Summary: When a fiery headed Ayaka moves to Karakura Town for a reasonably stable life, everything turns out to be nothing like it should be. She is thrown into a world she is unbeknownst to and she isn't quite sure if she is dreaming. Read as she goes through various scenarios where she discovers more about herself and the mysterious thing that is somehow in her head. My First Bleach story
1. When monochrome meets neon

Ayaka Kobayashi – One of the most common names you will ever hear. And that is what I am; a simple, boring yet bizarre girl who can barely keep a friendship for more than a few days. Life may not have been gentle to me for the past few years, but I work every day to make it better. My Aunt looks after me, due to my parents disappearing for some unknown reason. She said that they were on a long vacation, but by the age of seven, I realised that it was the gentler way of saying that they had taken a long journey to the deepest recesses beyond human fingers – beyond the grave. We have recently moved to Tokyo, within the regions of Karakura town, 'supposedly' the place where my parents first met. But who cares, I won't and never will know them.

The weather had picked up as the furniture lorry screeched to a stop outside of our new home, a place where I hoped new memories would be created. Scratch that, I hoped for new HAPPY memories. My childhood had been one fall after another, like a baby trying to walk for the first time, only to knock, bruise and scratch itself against objects in its path. I had a sort of disorder, where if my temper reached a certain limit, I would blank out and have no way to contain myself. The first time this had occurred was when I was ten years old, and some boys had been teasing me about my red hair, calling me all sorts of bad names such as 'ginger ninja', 'ginger biscuit', 'day walker' and lots of other nicknames that could probably fill twenty pages worth. Although, it wasn't till they started to pick on my old friend Nanami when I suddenly lost it, my aggressive level at its pinnacle. Everything went into a blur, and when I finally woke up, I found myself in a hospital bed with my Aunt glaring profusely till I felt as small as a shrimp, and wanted nothing more than the floor to swallow me up. It wasn't till I overheard my headmaster talking with my Aunt did I realise what I had done. My act of rage had given two boys a few bruises and placed one boy in the hospital, due to a severe head concussion supposedly created by the constant ramming of his skull against a brick wall, till his head concaved. From there on, every school I went to, I ended up getting severely pissed at the bullies, and ended up always being called a delinquent, and being the best school fighter.

For years I did not see Nanami, and by either fate or the devil did I meet her once more on the train platform with her friends, where I was waiting for a ride to my new school, the third in a row since that day. I was fourteen by this point, but my image had not changed since that day; my hair was past my waist, and my violet eyes still looked sunken due to a case of sleep deprivation I was now enduring. Her face was such an image; so much so I couldn't erase it from my mind even to this day. Nanami's once gorgeous face a mere seconds before contorted into one of anger, horror and disgust. Her golden locks tied in a pony tail swished like a bolt of light as she entered the train, a last glare sent in my direction. To her, I probably _was _the devil, in more ways than one. I made no attempt to go after her, for my heart that I thought was beginning to return to its original shape, once again crumbled into dust, its pieces scattering across the floor and being caught in that November air.

A sigh of relief slipped between my lips as I lay on my bed, the only piece of furniture in my new room. This time things would be different; I would no longer be a street fighter nor a burden to my loveable Aunt, who had suffered enough as it was from my acts of extreme violence. Only one day remained until my first day at school, and I was mixed between singing like a diva, to dragging my face in despair to boking in the corner due to sheer nerves. God, I thought, if you are up there, all I am asking is this; let school be okay, let me at least get a few friends and let's hope that I don't fucking batter someone in the face.

To my shock, a small voice beside my pillow greeted my ear. It took a few seconds until I spun round to face a small boy, semi-transparent beside my bed with a huge grin. I recognized him instinctively; before I left to Karakura town, I had beaten up a few guys when I found they had desecrated a grave in my old home town. The boy had appeared and thanked me, but I yelled and fell to the ground, telling myself over and over again that my eyes were betraying me. He had said that his name was Mikado Hojo, and I simply sprinted away. For I knew from the papers a few days before that he had died of a road accident near my school, meaning that I was either hallucinating or actually seeing a ghost. But here he was, before me once more and very much real.

"I never got time to thank you Miss." He said, giving me a toothy grin.

"No problem," I whispered out before I started to compose myself once more, "Are you really a ghost?"

The look he gave me was one of clear hurt, but smiled once more. His face looked so alive for someone who was clearly dead.

"Yes I am, and I understand the confusion you are in, so I will go for now. You need not see me again, I promise you."

Before I could stop him, he disappeared beneath my floor, leaving me alone in my room once more. I pulled at my hair and contained the urge to hit something. So many questions were spiralling around in my thick skull, with no obvious answers. Nothing made sense anymore, and here I thought life might become normal once more. Well, fuck that idea into the stratosphere.

* * *

A loud ringing shattered my wonderful sleep, dragging me out of la la land and forcing me to slip out of bed, my hair plastered to my face and my throat as dry as sandpaper. Looking at my clock, I realised that today was the day that school started once more, but all this brought me was a basket full of despair and dread to boot. I suddenly remembered the boy last night, and easily reassured myself that I must be seeing things due to a lack of sleep, nothing more and nothing less. But this did not bring me any comfort. Sighing, I put my uniform on and gazed into the mirror for the last time, before grabbing my bed and jogging down the flight of stairs. Grabbing a piece of toast from the table, I was preparing to sprint out of the house, only to be grabbed by my collar and dragged backwards.

'Hold it there young lady, let me have a look at you.' My Aunt stated, placing her cigarette into the already filled ash tray. Yes, she had an awful addiction to cigarettes, but whenever I said it was poor to her health, she only laughed and said that "we are all going to die anyway, so why worry?"; that is my Aunt for you.

"But Aunty, I need to go or I'll be late." I whined, crossing my arms in a huff.

"Who would have thought I'd see the day when you would wear a skirt," she marvelled with a chuckle, "It seems that anime doesn't lie about the length of it – haven't seen that much flesh since you were born."

I glowered at that comment, only receiving a laugh and pushing me forward, giving me a sad but reassuring smile.

"Go get 'em Ayaka, and don't let me down."

I gave a genuine smile before I darted out of the door and charged down the street, receiving various looks as I showed off my sprinting ability. I was on the track team you know, I am not that worthless.

The streets of Karakura town were surprisingly loud at such hours of the morning, something which I would have to get used to. I checked my watch to see the hand land on eight o'clock, and my eyes nearly bulged. Oh Shit, I only had ten minutes till registration!

Taking a short cut, I rushed on top of large fences (stone ones to be exact), and I sprinted till I thought my legs might fall off. The school appeared upon the horizon and I slipped into the gates and through the school entrance, dashing past some students gossiping near the reception office. With my schedule in hand, I found the room that I was looking for upon the third floor, where I was supposed to have history class. Knocking on the door, I waited till the teacher signalled me in before I entered. To say that my heart was racing would be an understatement; it felt as if someone had a gun to my head while I was running full speed on a treadmill. Not my greatest description I admit, but it was the first that came to mind.

The teacher game me a nod, and I introduced myself to the class, trying to act as painfully normal as humanly possible. It worked (or at least I hoped so), and took a seat near another ginger girl. Wait, I thought with surprise, there isn't one but _two _gingers in my class – what is this madness? She gave me a huge smile that simply lit her cherub face, and I almost automatically knew that she was probably going to be a very cheery class ended, she grabbed my hand and shook it violently, nearly taking it out of its socket.

"It is so nice to meet you, my name is Orohime Inoue and I hope we can be friends this year!" she exclaimed, beaming another smile straight into my already blurry eyes. "It is so great to meet another ginger beside Ichigo and I – do you know there is only 1% of gingers in the whole world! Crazy right?"

This girl was speaking at a hundred miles per hour, and my head felt a little swollen from her bright personality. Obviously, she seemed a little dim witted but that didn't stop her from being a nice person. Another person finally came to my aid.

"Orohime, I think you are overwhelming the poor girl," a short girl with short black hair stated as kindly as she could before turning back to my direction, "The name is Tatsuki Arisawa, and the other idiots here are Kiego, Mizuiro, Ichigo, Rukia, Chad and the nerd in the glasses is Uryu."

"What was that?" Uryu growled a few tables away. He wore a pair of glasses and had short dark hair, a contrast to his rather pale skin.

Later on, I was able to talk to the others as well - Chad was a tall fellow who looked at least twenty six, but seemed nice. Kiego was a rather short boy with spiky brown hair, and was clearly a pervert, since he couldn't take his eyes away from my chest. His friend Mizuiro was a heck of a lot quieter, with short black hair and such a cute smile. Rukia was another ball of wax – from the way she talked, I could tell that she had no confidence problems whatsoever. She was also short with spiky hair and the largest eyes I had ever seen, which sparkled like marble pebbles. Ichigo was an interesting character. Like me, he had ginger hair and was rather tall, and a body that could easily take down several guys in a brawl. To be honest, I was surprised that they were so open in taking me into their little group, but I definitely was not complaining.

The next few days were intriguing to say the least. I found that talking with them was as easy as cake, but I felt like I was lying to them, because I was pretending to be a typical teenager girl, unlike my rough and violent true self. But I simply could not bring myself to show them my true personality, because I feared rejection and didn't want to become an outsider once more. I could tell that Rukia was able to see through my facade, but I pushed that fact into the recesses of my , the image of the ghost boy kept cropping up into my mind, but I quickly flushed the idea out; I would never tell anyone about that situation, especially my new friends, because nothing could be worse than making your new buddies think that you are simply deluded.

When I was munching on one of Orohime's awful sandwiches (made of beetroot and chocolate, which was vile but I felt compelled to not tell her, so that I didn't break the poor girl's heart), Tatsuki asked me a surprising question.

"So, why did you move to this school?"

Because I was kicked out of my last school for beating the crap out of various people, I thought glumly.

"I needed to move here for my Aunt's job," I lied, "She works in the Japanese finance corporation."

"I see..." she mumbled with a pensive thought, "What about your parents, aren't they with you?"

To be honest, I knew that this was a typical question, but it still dragged a scratch against my heart.

"They died a while ago." I answered simply, taking a sip out of my apple juice.

"Oh, sorry..."

I don't need sympathy; I thought bitterly and Orohime tried to change the subject.

"So, do you like the food?" she asked cheerily.

"Uh..." I mumbled in a state of discomfort, "They taste good I guess..."

"Do you want to try pickle and orange, or carrot and cheese?"

"Nah thanks...I am rather full..."

"Hey Rukia, did you finish maths homework? I am kinda stuck..." Ichigo questioned while rubbing his head awkwardly. She glowered in his direction.

"Oh course, because I am not a dumbass." She replied curtly.

This started up a verbal war, which somehow integrated with using pictures of bunnies, but I wasn't going to ask why. We all laughed along, and my spirits lifted, even if it was only a little. Maybe life may just get a little better.

* * *

**This is my first attempt at a Bleach story - I only began watching the anime recently, but I find it to be quite intriguing. I tried to make an original character that is unique; hopefully you don't think she is a Mary Sue XD Please R&R!**


	2. Peculiar scenarios

During maths class, I started idly out of the mind. I was bored out of my mind, and trigonometry just made my head hurt. The only interesting thing that had happened in this class was when Ichigo had left halfway through, saying that he had a sore stomach and had to go to the nurse's office. That just shows how boring this class really was, being interested in the most mundane things.

Out of nowhere, a strange pressure(even though rather small) pressed against my being, causing me to gasp. When I glanced out of the window once more, I saw some sort of being hover in the distance, and I nearly toppled out of my chair. I had to rub my eyes a few times till I believed what I saw – the creature was at least half the size of the fricken' building, and had massive claws upon its hands that would probably able to rip a tank in half. It wore some sort of broken mask, and its mouth opened with an ear piercing roar, saliva dripping to the ground with its razor sharp teeth exposed to the air. What was that thing? I thought with horror, and why does no one else see this thing? I looked round the class, and saw that everything was normal. That was, until I sawed the uncomfortable expressions of Chad, Orohime and Uryu as they took sneak glances out of the window. If they could see it, why weren't they panicking? Better still, why weren't they doing anything about it.

Taking a sneak peak out of the window, I saw a flash of orange hair wiz past the creature, already lying crumpled and broken on the ground, before it disintegrated and blew away. The man wore some sort of black kimono, with sandals and a massive sword like known I had ever seen – it was curved, with no hilt and was white and black. When he finally stood up, I nearly fell over in surprise. The mysterious man was none other than my classmate Ichigo Kurosaki, but he seemed different somehow. Unlike his normal laidback attitude, he posed a face of complete seriousness. Out of nowhere, Rukia ran up to him, shouting something that was incoherent to my ears. So she was able to see these creatures too? And how had she left the class with no none seeing her. I rammed my head against the table in confusion, trying to knock some sense into my pea sized brain of mine while also startling the teacher halfway through their speech.

Everything is so mucked up.

* * *

Taking a back road to my house, my head was in the clouds as I thought of various situations I could write. Oh right, I guess I never told you that I like to write as a hobby. Preferably horror and fantasy, much to the dismay of my Aunt, who says that I should be a love sick girl pouring over romantic novels like they were my bibles. Flip that idea; I'll stick to Edgar Allen Poe and Tiana Carver.

The sun dipped into the clouds, snuggling into its amber bed as the moon poked out from the corner of my eyes, watching closely to see when the sun would disappear before escaping onto the dark canvas of the night. As I stared at the sky, my mind dabbled over the extra-terrestrial events that had occurred in the past few weeks. To be honest, I was starting to believe what I was seeing; sometimes, you have to accept the things you do not understand. First, the ghost boy who I had helped out, then that creature that was annihilated by Ichigo and his supernatural powers, and Rukia, Chad, Orohime and Uryu somehow knew of the phenomena occurring around us oblivious humans. I wanted to ask them what was going on, but I decided to go against that idea. What if this was top secret information, and if I got caught up in it, I would never be able to get out of it.

Suddenly, I felt a pressure compress upon my body, nearly sending me to the ground. The spiritual pressure was exponentially stronger then the creature at the school, and I felt close to passing out. A loud collision could be heard from afar and I instinctively charged down the road in the direction of Karakura Park, where dust and rubble was hanging in a death cloud. Great, what next? A large marshmallow giant with laser beams that engulfs souls to make cupcakes?

Large crowds of people surrounded a large crater in the ground, directly in the middle of the park. People murmured about whether it was a meteorite or some alien phenomena as I slipped through the crowd, trying to see the cause of the catastrophic damage. Voices could be heard within the crater, and by the time I reached the edge, I was sure I was about to faint. Before me where two men, very peculiar guys wearing bizarre white uniforms and sandals, sort of like the outfit that Ichigo was wearing – but these guys were different. One of the fellas was gigantic (even larger than Chad, which I previously thought was humanly impossible), with two red lines on either sides of his check and part of a mask-like jaw upon his chin.

"Hey Ulquiorra, why did we come to the human world again?" The large fella barked loudly. I was surprised that no one was trying to help them out, until I realised that _no one could see them_. It was just like the situation with Ichigo. The smaller fellow frowned lightly, looking at his companion with a stoic expression. This man (supposedly called Ulquiorra, which I thought was a rather peculiar name) was very different. Unlike his loud and overconfident friend, he was silent and showed no obvious emotions. He had short black hair and the palest skin I had ever seen (even more than Uryu), with emerald eyes and two black line drawn beneath his eyelids. Ulquiorra was quite skinny and then I suddenly saw something very creepy about them. They both had one hole somewhere on their torso, and I realised that the masked creature before had had the same thing. They could not possibly be human, yet they were more controlled than the other being.

"Yammy, I told you that you did not have to come along." Ulquiorra stated blandly, "We are here to remove any threats to Lord Aizen, and check up on the substitute soul reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki."

Wait, I thought with puzzlement, what did they just call him? A substitute soul reaper; what the hell was that? And who is this Lord Aizen anyway? Yammy grumbled slightly, before staring at the crowd above the ground. With a sudden leap, he landed upon the grass, a look of clear agitation in his eyes. I moved slowly away, backing up to the trees and tried to get away. Then that pressure appeared again, and the people around me fell like puppets cut from there strings as I stood my ground. He let out a loud cackle before he turned to his right to stare at a young girl. My heart nearly skipped a beat when I realised that it was Tatsuki, and she did not look well.

"Looks like one of them didn't die," he laughed, showing a large grin, "Ulquiorra, is this one of the people we have to take out?"

Ulquiorra stepped out of the pit, his hands casually in his pockets displaying a calm and confident manner.

"If you looked closely, you can see that she is near the collapsing from your spiritual pressure. She is nothing but trash." He simply replied, as his friend's grin seemed to grow even wider.

"I see; no point keeping her alive."

Before I realised what was happening, Orohime and Chad suddenly appeared, Chad's arm stopping Yammy's arm, but you could see the strain upon his body. When I looked twice, I saw that his arm wore some sort of black and red armour, and Orohime was healing Tatsuki with a golden shield with flying creatures that looked like fairies. Okay, I thought, now I am sure that I am not dreaming, because all of this is just way to bizarre and unreal to be fake. Great…

"O-o-orohime…" Tatsuki croaked before clattering to the ground.

"It's okay now; I'll look after you." She proclaimed, a look of determination expressed upon her pretty face. The larger man looked confused by this point.

"Ulquiorra, are these people at least some sort of obstacle we have to take down?" he asked, almost whining in anticipation for a fight.

"You can tell by just one glance, that they are merely trash."

Yammy sighed sadly before he turned back to Chad, and floored him completely. Blood flew across the ground as his body was chucked several feet before lying in front of Orohime's bewildered eyes. My body wanted to run, and my mind complied, but my heart screamed to do something. But what could I, a normal teenager girl, possibly do to help?

As Yammy's hand rose up once more to strike, I leaped out of the trees and bolted to Orohime's side and grabbed her, just in time to avoid the bone crushing fist of the giant called Yammy.

"Ayaka? How did you..?"

"No time Orohime, we need to get Tatsuki and Chad out of here before we get a nihalted by those bozos in the weird get up over there." I stated, much to the annoyance of the large oaf.

"What did you call us pipsqueak?" he growled, but a flash of orange intercepted his vision, and there stood Ichigo, with a stern glower upon his brow. God he looked lethally pissed off.

"I presume it was you that put Chad in that state?" he commented rhetorically, before removing his blade and shouting something called 'Bankai', whatever that meant. Before my eyes, his blade became slim and get black, and his outfit changed slightly as well, with a more rugged appearance. He moved so fast my eyes could barely keep up – Yammy's arm went flying and a yell erupted from the giant.

But then something stopped Ichigo, and he froze to the spot, whether it was fear or some sort of internal damage, I could not tell. He clattered to the floor, and Yammy went for the final blow. I let out a yell, but two figures appeared, taking down the oaf as if he was nothing. A man in hat and clogs at least in his mid thirties, and a tanned purpled haired woman with blazing amber eyes.

"Yammy, we are leaving." Ulquiorra proclaimed, hitting his companion back as the sky split in half, engulfing their forms and then there was nothing more. The tanned lady helped Orohime up, while Mr hat-and-clogs dragged Ichigo to his feet. I was not quite sure what to do, besides follow and see how my friends were fairing.

Well, this had been an action packed, stressful day. I just hoped they were alright, and that someone would answer my stupid questions.

* * *

**How you guys finding the story? I'd love to hear what you guys think of it ^_^ Please R&R**


	3. An unknown world under our noses

In Mr hat-and-clog's store, I helped my three companions into separate friends, and watched as a young boy and girl attended their wounds. The tanned lady ushered me through to the living room, where I sat down on the mats and took a cup of tea from the table.

"Well, I presume you will have a lot of questions to ask; but first things first. I am Yoruichi, the man in the hat over there is Kisuke Urahara and the larger fellow with the glasses is Tessai." The tanned lady stated, pointing out the two other gentlemen in the room, who gave a small wave."

"My name is Ayaka Kobayashi," I said politely in return, taking a sip of the herbal tea, "I have a bundle of questions to ask, and I really hope you can answer them."

So we discussed about my friends, and I learned quite a bit from the beautiful lady named Yoruichi. In this world there is a balance between the human world and the spiritual world, and a place called the soul society tries to maintain this balance. The thirteen court guard squads (run by people called soul reapers) take out beings called hollows, creatures who are corrupt human spirits who did not pass on to the soul society, staying in the human world for too long and start to eat other human beings. The creature that Ichigo (a substitute soul reaper, meaning he was a human who had gained the powers of a soul reaper from Rukia, who was previously a soul reaper in training) killed was one of these beings called hollows. Soul reapers use swords called Zanpakutō, which could kill hollows and allow spirits to pass on. Each sword has its own technique, and Yoruichi said that each had two stages – Shikai and Bankai. Ichigo had used Bankai, his ultimate technique, against Yammy.

I was amazed I was able to memorize all of this information, but somehow I was starting to get to grips with how this world worked.

"Hold on a second – who were those two guys we saw just now? I mean, they looked like humans, yet they each had a single hole just like a hollow." I said, placing down the cup upon the oak table.

"They are a whole different ball game, they are called Arrancars." Urahara stated, tapping his hat with his cane. An odd man indeed.

"Arrancar? What are they, some sort of hollow?" I puzzled, looking at the other three for answers.

"You could say that Miss; they are hollows who have taken off their hollow masks and have gained the power of soul reapers. The opposite can happen with a soul reaper, when they gain the powers of a hollow, but they are called Vizards." Tessai explained, as simply as he could, seeing that my face looked bland with confusion.

"Have we met a Vizard yet?"

"No, but Ichigo is a Vizard, although you did not see him change into that form."

"Oh…."

Tessai picked up the empty cups and hurried to the kitchen, while we three people sat in an uncomfortable silence, till I couldn't bear it anymore.

"So how is it that I can see spirits when I have not obvious powers, like the others and you guys."

"As you said, "obvious" powers; you may have some, but you just haven't unlocked them yet. Although how you survived their spiritual pressure is beyond us. You must have quite a lot of power, but you just don't know it at this point in time." Yoruichi suggested, much to my dismay. She chuckled at my shocked expression before proceeding. "We can try some tests to see what your powers are, but the only way to find out if you have any is to find it yourself. You will find most people unlock their true abilities when they are stuck in a sticky situation."

"So, are Urahara and yourself soul reapers too?" I asked, genuinely curious. They sent a peculiar look between each other.

"We are soul reapers, but we are not part of the soul society. Yoruichi was once commander of the discipline squad, and I was captain of the department of research and technology, but that was a while ago. Much before you were born." Urahara said, laughing a little as he seemed to reminisce the times of old. He almost looked upset by the subject.

"Sorry, but I need to get out of this house; it is so stuffy in here." Yoruichi stated, standing up and walking to the door. As she went, her body started to shrink, and I could not help but yelp. Her body began to sprout black fur, and ear elongated above her head. When I blinked again, all I saw was a small cat, giving me a quizzical look.

"You don't have to stare, I am not an alien." The cat murmured, almost smiling at my expression.

"Yoruichi can change into a cat whenever she pleases. That is why she was able to avoid all the soul reapers from the soul society for so long." Urahara said, earning daggers from Yoruichi. By this time I was not speaking, only trying to gain my self-control – it failed miserably.

Without warning, I grabbed her and hugged the cat, squealing like a little fan girl. I could not help it; I had a huge thing for cats, and every time I saw one, I could not help but want to hug it.

"Uh Miss Ayaka, you are killing Yoruichi." Urahara stated between fits of laughter, due to the distressed look upon the cat's face. I finally let her go; she bolted out of the door, too scared to look back in case I tried to hug her again.

"Sorry, I just love cats far too much." I mumbled, blushing shamelessly in embarrassment.

The night continued on like this until ten o'clock, when my three friends appeared at the door. When Urahara explained everything, the others laughed and talked things over. Uryu and Rukia appeared to see if they were okay, and joined the conversation. Even a little toy called Kon appeared, much to my fright and latter irritation – the toy was sooooo loud. They talked about their adventures in the soul society, where Rukia was saved from execution by Ichigo and her buddy Renji. I found out that Uryu was a Quincy, a race of humans with supernatural powers just like Orohime and Chad. By this point, I decided to show my true personality. When I told them this, they laughed and said it was cool, since it was normal for new kids at school to try and not overwhelm people with their true personality.

The night continued on until I had to head home, much to my sadness. The stars twinkled above, knitted into the dark cloth of the sky; I thought that stars couldn't be seen in cities. Oh well, guess I was wrong. When I reached home, my Aunt was just heading to bed.

"Where have you been all this time?" she asked, her parental mode kicking in.

"Out with my school friends – sorry, I should have told you." I said, dropping my school bag and heading up the stairs. My back ached from my school – sometimes, I wonder if someone secretly sneaks in some bricks and clay when I am not looking. My Aunt's face was one of complete shock, before she took me into a bear hug and nearly squeezed the life out of me.

"I am so happy for you!" she exclaimed, her smile as broad as the horizon, "Next time, you should bring them all over. I know that my cooking skills are limited, but you can always order pizza or something."

"Thanks Auntie, I'll remember that." I squeaked from the lack of oxygen, "Can you please release me before I go unconscious?"

She finally allowed me to go, and I headed back to my room, directly towards the be. I flopped onto the mattress and allowed a tired sigh to escape my lips. So many things had happened that it was quite hard to compute it all. Soul reapers, hollows, arrancars, the soul society…all of it seemed so surreal, yet all of this had been happening all around me, and not even once did I notice it. It would take some time to come to terms with it all, but that wasn't the subject that was primary on my mind. Urahara said that I had to have some sort of spiritual power like Orohime and Chad, since I was able to see spirits. Also, my power would probably be very powerful, since I was able to withstand the Arrancar spiritual pressure pretty easily. All of this information made me excited and nervous all at the same time. I wanted to help my friends, but all of this was quite scary to be perfectly honest. I guess I'll just have to get used it, I thought, before slipping into bed and falling quickly into a light slumber.

* * *

School felt bizarre compared to all the events of yesterday, but somehow it was reassuring that not everything had dropped into the world of fantasy. Ichigo still wasn't at school, but Orohime reassured me that he was fine, although her expression expressed a different opinion. Rukia later told me that he was secretly training with Vizards, to further strength his control over his inner hollow. The days turned into weeks, and Ichigo still had not returned, and I was beginning to fret; well, internally at least. School felt mundane and home felt awkward, and I could not settle down.

Part way through this time period, something bizarre started to happen to me. A voice, however soft, started cropping into my head out of nowhere. However much I avoided the voice, it just wouldn't go away. It would disappear and reappear whenever it liked, and I felt like I was going insane. One time, when I was lying on the bed, the voice appeared once more.

"Ignoring me won't make a difference." The voice stated, almost sneering as it spoke. The being had a raspy voice, as if its lungs had been battered repeatedly with a baseball bat. I glowered at the ceiling.

"Can't you just leave me alone." I thought, tuning over to my side and staring out of the open window. The sky was almost burning, clouds like candy floss suspended in the air and birds darting like naughty children twisting, turning and diving through the sea of clouds.

"Not gonna happen honey; I am here to stay. For the record, I am not an inner hollow. Don't think of such silly things."

My eyes flew open at that comment. I had been pondering upon the idea that he might be my spilt personality, but it seemed not, much to my content.

"Then what ARE you exactly?" I asked allowed, so intrigued to hear the answer.

"That is an essay question; can't be bothered to explain it all, so you will simply have to wait and see."

"Bastard…" I mumbled, pissed beyond belief. This being had the audacity to listen to my thoughts, invade my mind but not have the patience to explain to me what it was, which was completely rude.

"You are an odd human you know that? You are more worried about my manners then how dangerous I might actually be to you."

"Stop reading my mind!" I shouted, throwing a pillow at the opposite wall. Everything about this being was utterly intolerable, but he did have a point – why wasn't I scared of him?

"I know that I have a point – why don't I at least give you a piece of information to ponder about. I am not a spirit, soul reaper, arrancars or inner hollow. My body is in a separate direction, but we are connected because you are my master. Only you can materialize me into your world and allow me to help you out. But let me say one thing; you may think that I am your friend, but I am not. Don't turn your back, or it may be wide open to a stab to your spine. Think about that for awhile. Goodbye, my dear."

With that, the voice disappeared, and my mind was in absolute turmoil. He wasn't my friend nor my foe, and I was the one who had complete control over him if I was able to summon him. But what was he? What is my power?

All these thoughts streamed through my mind for a couple of minutes before I heard a knock at the door. My Aunt answered the door, and with a squeal, she shouted up the stairs:

"Ayaka, it is two of your friends from school!"

I leaped from my bed, slipping on one of my textbooks and I face planted the floor. With a red face, I exited my room and headed down the stairs where I saw Orohime and Rukia standing in the alcove.

"Is it alright if Ayaka can stay at my house for a sleepover?" Rukia asked, much to my surprise. Sleepover? When did I agree to this?

"Of course!" My Aunt exclaimed, making my two friends jump at her enthusiasm. Without any resistance, I went up to my bedroom and started to pack when they both entered.

"Take very little since we are going to the soul society." Rukia proclaimed.

"Alright, we are going to the sou- wait what?!" I shouted in dismay, taking a few seconds to compute the statement.

"Orohime needs to practice her power and I am going to help her. We imagined that you might like to come along and see the soul society for yourself."

"Yes please, I'd love to go." I said, excitement literally flowing from me.

I said goodbye to my Aunt before we headed off in the direction of Urahara's shop, where he showed us to a rather peculiar archway. Supposedly, it allowed us to enter the soul society without forcing our souls out of our bodies. I was rather hesitant with the idea, but I really wanted to see the place that they had spoken of, when they described Rukia's rescue.

We entered the archway, with a warning from Urahara that the tunnel would only stay up for a certain amount of time, but it was longer than when Ichigo and the gang and tried to enter before. The tunnel was pitch black, and I notice that Orohime looked unnerved.

"Why are you so frightened? Are you afraid of the dark or something?" I asked, genuinely concerned.

"Well," she stuttered, "This was the same tunnel we travelled in last time with Yoruichi, and the tunnel was being cleaned last time; we barely survived."

"Oh, that is understandable." I sweat dropped, understanding her fidgety state. She looked like a rabbit in front of the headlights of a car.

A loud roar erupted from down the tunnel and we all stared at each other in fear, before we finally had the guts to turn around. A bright light, like one on a train, was heading towards at us, at a very rapid pace.

"Shit, you have to be kidding me!" I yelled, before we darted down the tunnel.

"Why did the cleaner have to appear again?" Orohime wailed, not daring to look back.

We sprinted until our legs nearly fell off, and we just made out of the tunnel; we landed onto the ground in odd angles, and my back felt like it was about to give in.

"Are you sure there is no other way to enter the soul society without risking our mortal lives?" I asked, brushing myself off and stretching, my muscles strained from the severe athletic activity.

"Nope." Rukia answered curtly, much to my annoyance.

We were within a huge compound, with various buildings of odd shapes surrounding our forms. I looked further into the distance to see a massive building upon a tall hill, with a slender almost breakable tower built far into the sky. This place was the soul society, I thought, this is sweet.

* * *

**TADA! Here is another chapter for you lovely people out there :D. Hope you are enjoying reading this as much as I am enjoying writing this. Please R&R!**


	4. What the history books don't tell you

I followed Rukia through the compound, as other soul reapers looked at us with queer looks. All wore zanpakutōs upon their sashes, and all were dressed in black kimonos and sandals. There were thirteen court guard squads, and I could already see a few of the squad symbols upon the arms of various soul reapers. I felt a little out of place in my human clothes, but I didn't have a enough time to think when a girly voice erupted from down the path.

"Rukia! Orohime! My, how are you my darlings?" A soul reaper exclaimed, her outfit nearly making my eyes bulge. Her kimono barely contained her front, and her flowing fiery red hair fell far down her back. Wait, another ginger? Really, this was starting to get ridiculous.

"We are great Rangiku; is the soul society been normal since we've been gone?" Rukia asked, after she was finally released from a painful bear hug that nearly made her face turn purple.

"Normal? Honey, when the soul society becomes normal all hell will break loose!" she laughed, "Everything is as it should be – although I have missed you terribly."

She finally noticed me, an expression of puzzlement forming upon her brow.

"So, who is this individual?"

"This is Ayaka Kobayashi; she is at school with us and seems to have some sort of spiritual power, yet we have no clue yet." Orohime explained, taking my hand and pushing me forward.

"Nice to meet you!" The red head chirped, extending her hand out in a friendly jester.

"Ditto." I replied quietly, taking the hand and shaking it slightly. All of this friendliness was still unknown territory to me. We all went together to the inner sanctum of the soul society, which was even larger than I had expected. Soul reapers of all ages were moving around like buzzy bees, unable to be deterred from their work.

Single rooms were assigned to us, and I started to unpack and change into my pajamas. I took a sneak peak look out of the paper door, and found my breath simply being taken away. The moon shown gloriously upon the sky, the stars bare twinkles under its stupendous beauty. I had always preferred the night, for I found it to be more comforting, more beautiful and it was nearly impossible to get sunburned by the moon.

I slipped out of my room and stepped down to the edge of the pool, where I could see a clear replica of myself, staring bewilderedly back at me. The water was in pristine condition, and vibrant water weeds swayed gracefully within its shallow deeps. My face suddenly contorted into a darker being, with a snide smirk plastered upon its face. I fell backwards in shock, and couldn't help but take a peak back in. The face was still there, and I was definitely sure it was _not _human. The male face gazed back with blatant arrogance, before showing a ray of sharp white teeth.

"Well, well, we finally get to meet upfront, although I cannot yet appear before you physically." The figure stated, and the voice triggered a memory. This was the same person who had lately been inside my mind, and somehow I felt two emotions at the same time – satisfaction from finally meeting the sneaky bastard, and the horror of what this creature may do next.

"Finally decided to actually meet me, instead of messing with my mind with a pair of chopsticks."

The creature let out a quiet snicker, and his eyes displayed the same emotion as a shark would do to a small and defenseless fish. What did he want to talk to me about?

"What do you want to talk to me about, you ask. Well, that is a little complicated my dear." The creature stated, reading my mind as easily as breathing.

"Can you please get out of my bloody head?" I asked in annoyance, but it would probably be in vain.

"Do you want to know why I am here?"

"Sure, blast away Captain Mysterious."

"Sarcasm is unbecoming of a young woman."

"Like I give a flying f*ck!"

The creature sighed, its patience clearly on the border line between calm and full blown rage.

"My name is Insidiousa; does that satisfy you enough to listen?"

"…I guess. My name is Ayaka Kobayashi – now speak before I turn my heel and go straight to bed."

"Stay in the soul society; do not go back to the human world, especially with your mates."

I blinked my eyes for a few seconds, before the information started to settle in.

"Ehh, why?"

"Trust me, just don't."

"But I need to go back in two days so that I can go back to school. I have a chemistry test on Tuesday, and Monday is the only time I will be able to revise for it."

"There is more at stake than a simple test." The creature snarled, and I shivered a little. It was clearly very serious; but why?

"Why do I need to stay?" I asked, my patience running slowly to zero.

"I can't say specifically, for if I did then the balance of time would be altered, and not for the good. Trust me kiddo, don't leave here for I can't help you until you unlock your power."

"What is my power – and what the hell are you anyway?"

"Fine, I will leave you with food for thought. I am the embodiment of decay and am able to bring pandemonium to even the most still of saintly pools."

Before I could say anymore, Insidiousa disappeared from the reflection and I was quite peeved and anxious at the same time. This creature really had no manners, and it had the audacity to tell me what to do, and even then I had this deep little feeling that I should follow its rather obscure advice. Also, what was up with its cryptic message – embodiment of decay? Bringer of pandemonium? What the hell was that supposed to be about?

Sighing, I slinked back to my bedroom and flopped upon the bed, sighing tiredly with a feeling of fear crawling at the bottom of my stomach.

* * *

The next day I was utterly bored, for I was forced to watch Orohime and Rukia fight between each other, and I could do nothing at all. It just made me feel even more useless to my friends. As they were training, I kept flicking back to what the creature had said before, and I desperately knew I needed to know more. So, I went to find Captain Ukitake, a man I had met earlier that morning and had been delighted with his politeness.

He was sitting at his desk, looking though various piles of anonymous papers. His long white hair looked rather messy, meaning that he was probably stressed out already. I was turning to leave, feeling like I would only intrude, but he saw a glimmer of my form.

"Miss Kobayashi, how are you finding the soul society?" He asked, a genuine yet tired smile spread across his face.

"It is interesting. Very different from the world I know, that is for sure."

"I am glad to hear it. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Actually, you can Captain Ukitake."

He pointed to the chair opposite to him, and I sat down quickly. Mr Ukitake was Captain of Squad 13 within the soul society, and I was sure he would be able to answer my rather bizarre question.

"What kind of creature would you say can be the 'Embodiment of decay', and is able to bring 'pandemonium' where ever it goes?"

His face scrunched up in thought.

"A peculiar question; why do you ask?"

I flinched a little at the question, before finally admitting to the man that may think me beyond insane.

"I have been having mental encounters with some creature that can definitely not be human. It said that it wasn't a Hollow, nor an Arrancar. It stated that I was the only one that can be able to summon it. It's name is 'Insidiousa', and it tried to talk to me last night too. It stated that I shouldn't return to the human world with my friends, for bad things may happen."

Ukitake paled slightly at my description, and there was a few seconds where he clearly didn't know what to say.

"That sounds unquestionably like a Goryō, but I could be mistaken."

"A Gor-what?"

"A powerful yokai deriving from the Heian period in Japan. They are powerful entities with the power to bring earthquakes and typhoons by the simple flick of a finger. There are many different types, some specialising with elements, while your one sounds like on which brings chaos and death."

Silence ensued the room, and I wasn't sure whether to gap in shock, scream like a banshee or take the situation as an adult. I took the latter into hand.

"So, how is it that a death yokai is somehow in my head?" I interrogated, my panic button only barely unscathed.

"I don't know; it may be possible that you might have a telepathically connection with this creature, but it is very slim. This "Insidiousa" is clearly not possessing you, but I am uncertain whether you shall remain that way or not – after a month or so, they can possess the mind and bring havoc into the physical world. This won't be a problem of course, since this sounds like something recent." He stated with a cheery tone, "it is recent, correct?"

"Uh, what would you constitute as a 'long time' may I ask?"

"A month."

"Okay…then we may be in trouble."

" You can't be, my dear; from what I have heard, the cases of women being harassed by Goryō usually result in the women being completely drained of life energy, and their souls broken down. You are completely intact, so I am afraid it is hard to believe that this has only been going on for a whole month. Your perception of time may be rather twisted out of shape."

"Trust me, this has been going on for 1 month, 26 days and 3 hours, I doubt that I am lying to you here!" I exclaimed in frustration, jumping out of my seat in agitation.

"Alright, I believe you my dear now please sit." He ushered, so I calmed down and returned to my chair. "Did you really count the days and hours?"

"I'm not insane if that is what you are suggesting." I huffed childishly, "When you are being narked by a supernatural being consistently ever day, you begin to remember ever time with despair and fear that it may come back."

"I see. Miss Kobayashi, I will make sure to look up records from the archives, and I shall come back to you in a few days. Meanwhile, make sure to not interact nor believe in whatever the creature may say. Alright?"

"Yes Captain Ukitake – thank you."

With that, I left his office with a little relief. At least I wasn't going too barmy; it was quite a relief to finally tell someone. I decided to return to my room for a shower, reassuring myself that by the time I was cleaned ad dressed, Rukia and Orohime would be done with their training.

I sheered my skin off with hot water to clear the gutters of my mind, and I reluctantly decided to leave the shower. I wrapped up in a large cotton towel, and I checked my face in the mirror in case of imperfections (don't deny, you all look for spots on your face too). As I gazed into the mirror, my face started to mutilate and I let out a yelp. Before me stood the damned creature of my nightmares, the supposed "Insidiousa".

"Sorry honey, didn't mean to frighten ya." It chuckled, whistling as it gazed at my body. "You can drop the towel anytime you like."

I blushed profusely, and threw a hairbrush at the mirror, but I sadly remembered that he wasn't in a physical form.

"Get out you heathen!" I yelled, its face grinning in mock humour.

"Throwing a tantrum ain't gonna change nothing."

"Why won't you leave you demon, yo-you Goryō.!"

"Oh, so you finally figured out what I am – interesting. Who helped you?"

"None of your business, now leave; I need to get changed."

"Why do I have to go? Can't I just admire a little living mortal art?" Insidiousa asked, smirking at my horrified expression.

"God, you really are a pervert."

"One of a kind; now listen here…"

"Oh, don't start! I was clearly told not to believe in anything you say or you may possess my mind and break down my soul."

A moment of speechlessness appeared, before it burst into howls of laughter, its arm holding its stomach in pain as if I had said the most witty joke.

"What kind of yokai do you think I am?"

"Uh, a Goryō?"

"Not the common garbage you can find in Yomi."

"Yomi? Where is that?"

"Crap, forget I said that – anyway, I am not your enemy. Please believe me when I say this."

"How can I when you don't explain yourself; now tell me, what is this place called Yomi?"

"Fine!" Insidiousa erupted, the glass partially cracking, making me wince, "You want to know? Fine. Yomi is one of the dimension where yokai exist – it is basically a hell where those who have sinned are sent for eternal damnation by Kami. Happy now, Miss Kobayashi?"

I paled as the information hit me like a smouldering hammer.

"So, you are in Hell?"

Insidiousa sighed deeply, its claws pinching the brim of its nose.

"Yes, in simple terms. That is why I can't meet you face to face until you find a way to tap into your internal power. Until that time comes, I am stuck in this infernal cage. So if you would kindly find a way to get me out, it would be much appreciated."

Insidiousa slipped from vision, the condensation the only source of shape upon the steamy mirror. I wasn't quite sure what to think any more, besides two main questions:

1. How do I tap into this supposed 'power'?

2. And what would be the conscience if I didn't?

* * *

**Ohh, the tension is rising! Be prepared, the next chapter is going to be rather interesting...a LOT happens. Please stay tuned and please R&R! ^_^**


End file.
